Me too
by AmethystEyes22000
Summary: Rachel was an empath without the ability to show emotion. Of course things change, but that doesn't exactly mean old habits die easily. Just a quick glimpse of how she and Gar overcome this little obstacle. (Rae/Gar) (Rob/Kor)


Rachel Roth lay wide awake starring at her alarm clock. She could hear her housemate running the shower, but she had about three minutes until her alarm went off, and he was usually out by then. When she first moved into the two bedroom condo she had been horrified at the prospect of sharing a bathroom, but it turned out just fine, since her housemate was as clean and as private as she was. It was usually quiet, work and school, maybe small talk at dinner if one wasn't working late, but today was different. Today was exceptional, and she hardly slept with the excitement running through her veins.

Today they were hosting a little get together with some close friends… well more like family to celebrate the engagement of two of their friends. The silliest thing was that she wasn't the one engaged, she wasn't even dating, but this gathering would most likely lead to a small conversation with a possible crush, though she had yet to define him as such, it was still a grey area. She smiled to herself and heard something explode in the distance.

"Ah! Come on Raven!" Richard yelled from the bathroom, which consequently caused her to chuckle leading to another small explosion.

She could hear him stomping over and watched he burst into the room dripping wet, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist, and a bloodied hand. "You owe me a rather expensive bottle of cologne and two bottles of hair spray."

She rolled her eyes, the guy had three times as many hair products as she did, and that wasn't including gel, though he was now switching back and forth between gel and hairspray. "Here," she sat up and held out her hand to his blooding one. Slowly a blue light commenced and his wounds disappeared.

"Why are you excited anyway?" he asked.

"It could've been a nightmare," she retorted.

"If it was I'm sure you would've blown the faucet off like last time, not to mention we have a bond," he replied. "I've never been that excited to do my hair."

She smiled, and almost laughed but he had a finger to her lips before she could, "Sorry… I was just thinking about seeing everyone."

"Everyone or one specific person?" he smirked. She moved to bite his finger but he removed it quickly. Her alarm suddenly started blaring with a flick of her hand it shut off.

"Figure it out detective, now can you get out I need to get dressed," she stood and moved over to her closet."

"Just so you know he asked about you, I don't get why you can't just give him a call every now and then."

"Get out Dick!" she snapped, her excitement now melted away with nervousness and embarrassment as its' replacement.

He put his hands up defensively and left the room.

Rachel grumbled to herself. Over the years Richard had gotten used to their bond and had even figured out how to use it against her. Not that she kept secrets or anything, but ever since the titans had disbanded she had found herself missing a certain titan, and sometimes her mind wandered. Imagination was a dangerous weapon that seemed to know no boundaries. Often times she'd be snuggled up on the couch with her text books and a large cup of tea, and she'd find herself day dreaming of him instead of actually studying. The embarrassing part is sometimes they filtered into Richard's head and then later on he'd make some snarky comment of how she was trying to turn him gay.

Which really at the time she made the bond it was under life or death circumstances (he always argued that it wasn't), and secondly she'd had to endure his dreams about Barbara, Kori, or whoever else, and at least hers were rated g. Dick Grayson had a filthy mind and she feared for the dignity of any girl that dated him.

She brushed her hair out angrily as she thought of him, he always found a way to piss her off, and they ended up arguing like school children, though most of the time it was just playful banter. Sighing she stared at her reflection. She wore a navy blue cotton dress, with a high waist and capped sleeves, her skin was creamy white, not as pale, her hair black, and her eyes a grayish blue. She wasn't really one for makeup, but living with Dick had made her lots of girl friends, and she'd caved under the pressure after her first study date. Not that she wore much; eyeliner, mascara, and a red lip color, were enough.

She had also mastered tools like the curling iron, and the magic wand. Her hair was still short, right at her shoulders, but it was shaped into a bob, to give it a bounce, the hair dresser had told her. Heels were another story, she could maybe last in two inch heels for a couple hours, she usually stuck to flats or one inch. Slipping on some black flats she grabbed her book bag and headed out the door. She had glasses to complete her look, but usually only wore them around campus.

She drove a black prius, (a gift from Bruce), and spent most of her time in the library after school. It took a lot of convincing to make people stop assuming she was screwing Dick. Barbara Gordon had been the most scrutinizing, but eventually people came around. Richard Grayson went for tall skinny red heads, and the occasional blonde, while Rachel was neither of those things, and could pass for his little sister. Most assumed she was a distant cousin.

"Why Rachel, are you all dolled up for me?"

She grimaced, the downside was Roy Harper. Who would've guessed that the archer would be attending Gotham University, and be majoring in english lit, and journalism, though he claimed it was because he wanted to write fiction novels about himself, she suspected he was planning on copying superman and becoming a journalist as a cover, since he was in line to protect Metropolis when the legendary hero moved to the Justice League tower full time.

"Please, I'm running late," she reasoned.

"No problem, no problem at all. Have you seen Nina?"

"No, I'm heading to class," she replied a hint of annoyance in her voice.

She wasn't annoyed at all, but wasn't in the mood to make small talk with him. She needed to calm down and focus on the night's game plan. Worst case scenario, _he _didn't show up to the party alone. She felt nauseous just considering that fact. Rachel sat in her desk trying to regulate her breaths and sooth her mind, but her heart felt as if it was pounding. Since learning to express herself, she had encountered some setbacks. Experiencing too much of any kind of emotion sent her into a panic attack, it was like her body wasn't used to the strain. It was the reason she had never pursued any crush whatsoever. Well technically she'd only had one crush to pursue, (a quick intake of breath as she admitted that silently to herself), he was in fact a crush, and she'd been pathetic about the entire thing.

She's hardly spoken more than a word to him in two years, though she wrote cards for the holidays and went to the _family _gatherings her roommate put together. The moment she labeled him as her crush she could barely be in the same room as him without turning red and blowing something up. She really wasn't one to make progress when it came to building relationships, but her emotions were getting to her. If she waited too long he might be taken, or worse, he might start to resent her for the silent treatment she'd been giving him.

"Rachel!" A tall brunette walked swiftly over to her, plopping into the seat next to her. "You've got to help me get rid of Roy. How do you do it?"

Rachel frowned, "well I don't kiss him for one."

The brunette grimaced. Nina had to be the only sincere friend she had made during her college career. She honestly had no interest in Richard Grayson, it helped that she was from England and had never even heard of him before coming here. Besides both having only platonic feelings for the play boy, they were both serious about their studies. Rachel had been happy to spend time with a reasonable person, who studied, and took college and most of life seriously. It was Nina who had helped Rachel learn how to dress up, and had also been giving her advice on the whole sort of crush, grey area thing.

"I know," Nina whimpered. "I had a momentary lack of judgment, I mean you have to admit he's sort of charming when he wants to be."

"I don't have to admit anything," Rachel replied, her heart still pounding. On the drive over she had pictured a certain man (_Oh goodness, was he a man now_?) with a certain woman, and whatever she was feeling was suddenly quite painful. She tried to push the feeling down, but it kept coming up like vomit in an upset stomach.

"So… would you hate me if I gave in and dated him?"

"What?" Rachel shook her thoughts away and looked at her friend. "Nina you can do whatever you want. It doesn't matter to me if you date him. I mean he's Roy, he's like my annoying brother, but he's still a decent guy."

"He is?" she questioned. "I mean you always say he's a conceited, two timing loser."

Rachel smirked, "I'm a little harsh, insulting him is kind of like a hobby for me."

"So you've never known him to cheat?"

"No, I don't even think he's had a serious girl friend. He takes his work really seriously," she noticed the professor come in and turned to the front.

Class was informative, and Rachel was happy for the distraction, though towards the end of the lecture she found herself day dreaming again.

_It was mid afternoon, and she was settled on her favorite end of the couch, book in hand, a cup of tea on the coffee table. It was an interesting read on the difference between the healing potions on Azarath and the ones from this dimension. She made a mental note to discuss the topic with Jinx, seeing as they could both learn something from it. She was half way through when she realized she wasn't alone. Beastboy sat beside her playing video games, silently starring at the screen. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, but when she did so she found him starring at her._

_ "I take it you've finally noticed it," he smirks at her, turning his gaze back to screen. She blushes and her stomach does a few flip flops. That's right, Starfire and Robin were out a date and Cyborg was picking up parts from out of town._

_ "I don't know what you're referring to," she replied in her typical monotone, though she could feel her heart skip a beat when he turned and smiled at her in response. _

_ "I think you do Rae," he set the controller down and turned his body completely towards her; suddenly their knees are touching, though she doesn't quite register how that's even possible. Hadn't there been a full seat cushion between them?_

_ "Beast-"_

_ His finger on her lips silences hers, and ever so slowly he starts to lean in. He's cautious, gaging her reaction, but never stops leaning in. He hovers just above her face, his breath hot against her lips, "Tell me you want this Rae…"_

_ It's at that moment that she realizes how much she fancies the color green, his eyes, his skin, his hair, she fancies everything about him, "I…"_

"There's nothing to worry about folks, just a busted pipe, if everyone can make their way to the outside quad," the professor says.

Rachel blinks as everything around her is buzzing. The fire alarm is blaring, and you can hear rushing water from somewhere nearby. She starts to put her books away and notices Nina is waiting for her. They head out together, Rachel silently repeating her mantra trying to calm her nerves.

* * *

Garfield Logan has grown up. He keeps his room clean, he studies and does his homework without anyone reminding him, and he has a small part time job at a coffee shop. His days are mainly spent studying, since he's majoring in medicine, though sometimes when he's completely free he volunteers at the animal shelter. He's twenty, shares a two bedroom apartment with three guys, and so far life has been simple. Even now he's just sitting at his desk trying to memorize the various parts of the human body for an upcoming test.

"Hey Gar, can you believe Wally's getting married?" Garth asked. "We'll have to find another roommate after the summer."

"Hmm…" Gar mumbled trying to hint to his roommate that he was in no mood to talk.

"I'm excited though, just to see everyone you know?" he continued on. "I bet you ten bucks Rachel and Rich are hooking up. I mean it's just the two of them."

Gar paused, "Rachel isn't the type."

"Yeah, but we both know Rich… I bet he couldn't last two weeks without seducing her," Garth chuckled, "I mean no girl can resist him, he even got into Super girl's pants, not to mention Kori and Babs."

Gar frowned, "There's no way even if he did come on to her that she'd go for someone like him."

"Why not, he's completely her type, gothic, mysterious, cool, not to mention they have that bond, bet he'd know what to do without her even saying anything," Garth chuckled.

"Rachel doesn't have a type, now can you shut up and let me study," Gar snapped angrily.

"Dude, are you telling me that if you lived alone with the sexy, unattainable bookworm genius you wouldn't at least try? I mean you have to admit, Kori's all eye candy, but Rachel has the kind of mystery that keeps the imagination rolling twenty four seven, you know?"

Gar paused and turned to him in disgust, "Are you saying you have _those _dreams about her?"

Garth chuckled, "Not in a few years, but the first time I met her, wow, I would've killed to switch teams with one of you guys."

Gar was irritated with Garth, but suddenly a sinking feeling started to form in the pit of his stomach, "Did you ever tell her?"

He shook his head, "I told Wally to mention it to Jinx, that way she'll know when I see her at the party, and know my intentions."

"Your intentions?" Gar echoed.

"Yeah, I'm gonna get her alone, and ask her out, worst case scenario she throws me out of the window right?" he grinned.

"Oh," Gar said, obviously not happy with the idea of Garth asking Rachel out.

Before he started college he had always been intimidated by him. Garth was the one hero that Raven had ever showed interest in, though it only lasted for a few minutes, he could still picture her standing with Starfire both going gaga over the fish boy. Now though, with the ring giving him back his old features, and his slightly more mature sense of humor Gar could hold his own. Several girls asked him out during his college career, not that he ever gave any of them the time of day. Most were shallow, blonde haired blue eyed girls, who sort of reminded him of Terra.

Yeah, they laughed at his jokes. Yeah, they always made him feel like he was amazing, but he had a feeling if they knew who he was they'd high tail it.

Now there was no way he'd get any studying done. The thought of Raven giving any guy the time of day angered him. It was bad enough when she chose to go with Robin to Gotham, not that he ever said a peep about it, he was sure she could sense the jealousy covering him those last few weeks in the tower. He felt betrayed, wasn't he the one always trying to include her, always going out of his way to show her he was paying attention, that she meant something to him.

Maybe he had missed all the signs. Robin was the leader, the one who took care of all of them. He was the one who saved her from her father, while they all played the distraction. He was the one she hugged just after the fight was over. He was the one who trained her one on one in hand to hand combat after Adonis had targeted her. He was the one who spent early mornings drinking coffee and reading the paper across from her as she sipped tea.

It was possible that the signs were there all along, but he just always thought what everyone else thought, Robin and Starfire just made sense. Now though, Starfire had spent the last year on another planet, maybe they had broken it off. Maybe she had given them her blessing.

Gar groaned loudly.

"What's wrong with you?" Wally said suddenly in the doorway.

"Just sick of studying," he replied.

"So did you tell Jinx?" Garth asked.

"Bad news man, I talked to Dick, apparently Rachel's head over heels for some guy, has been for years," Wally shrugged.

Garth grimaced, "Dude… why is it that every girl seems to like me, but never wants to date me?"

"You're just eye candy man," Gar grinned, relief flooding his body. For all he knew Rachel could've lied about having someone in mind.

"How do I even know this information is accurate? I can't picture her just spilling her guts to him?" Garth scoffed.

"It's hilarious actually. Apparently Rachel daydreams a lot, and they filter into Rich's mind through their bond," Wally chuckled.

Gar frowned, "What?"

"Eww… gross?"

"Not those kind of dreams," Wally rolled his eyes. "You two need to grow up. This is emotionless demon girl we're talking about. Her dreams don't really go past hand holding."

"Really? Do you know who the guy is?" Gar asked.

"Richard wouldn't say, but he's definitely going to be at the party tomorrow night. Richard's planning on doing the whole big brother spill on him," Wally grinned.

"What, dude that's not fair, she hasn't even given us a chance," Garth snapped.

"What do you mean us?" Gar frowned.

"You guys should bring dates, let her see what she's missing and she'll forget all about mystery guy," Wally grinned, both he and Garth ignoring Gar.

"Would that work on her?" Garth frowned.

"Jealousy works on every girl," Wally grinned.

"Al right," Garth pulled out his cell phone and dialed.

"Are you seriously taking Wally's advice?" Gar frowned. "His only dating experience is Jinx."

"What's that supposed to mean?" the red head frowned. "And where's Scott?"

"Working late," Gar replied. "And I mean you can't deal with a-"

"Ssh!" Garth said effectively cutting him off. "Hey Megan, yeah this is Gar's roommate, Garth. Uh, no he lost his cell phone so I told him I'd relay a message to you…"

"What the-" Gar moved to snatch the phone but was tackled by Wally, suddenly finding himself bundled in his comforter, a beanie stuffed in his mouth.

"Yeah, you know our roommate Wally's engagement party is this weekend in Gotham, and he wanted to know if you'd be his date… yeah. Oh of course just as friends," Garth said. "Ok, he'll pick you up at two on Saturday. Ok, see you then."

Wally grinned as he released Gar from his blanket prison.

"What the hell? I don't like Megan, and she's already talking to some other guy," Gar frowned.

"Yeah, but Rachel will totally notice if you show up with a cute little blonde girl, and besides Megan said she'd go as friends and her sister lives in Gotham so you'd actually be doing her a favor since she won't have to drive out there for the weekend," Garth grinned.

Gar frowned, "I thought you liked Rachel?"

"Like you wouldn't rip apart any guy that tried to go near her," Wally grinned.

Gar groaned, his friends sucked monkeys.

* * *

Breathing was simple right? Currently though it was taking all of her concentration. The condo was spotless, dinner trays all set out, plenty of seating though they had pulled out a few extra chairs. She had changed into a dark green evening gown, strapless that fell straight to her ankles. It was sophisticated enough, her hair pulled up into a neat but, her usual make up, simple pearl earrings, and necklace, yet as she looked at her reflection she doubted it would be enough. This entire plan seemed pathetic, and she'd dreamt almost every night of different scenarios. It was amazing to her how many ways this could possibly go wrong.

"You're over thinking this," Richard leaned against the doorframe of the bathroom. He was dressed to the nines, and Rachel was sure if she breathed a big enough breath she'd pass out from the cologne he was wearing.

"I just… the idea of entering into any kind of relationship frightens me, and I mean I treated him like shit all those years ago… I just, I have a really bad feeling about this," she choked out the words.

"I get it. You spent the first twelve years of your life in confinement being told you were completely alone, and would be the destroyer of an entire worlds happiness," he said blankly. Rachel took in a sharp breath at the reminder of this afternoons nightmare. "But that didn't happen Rachel. You don't have a father. You don't have a mother, but you know what you do have? You have a brother, I guess you could call me like your twin since we're the same age. You have a best friend, a sister. You have an older brother. You have friends that are more like cousins. We're still titans, and we're still a family."

As he spoke he took her hand and squeezed it.

"You have a family so don't get overwhelmed, don't think that you're alone and you're meant to be alone because like Beastboy said, you're never alone," Richard smirked as Rachel turned ten shades red.

"But if Kori's my sister and you're my brother-"

"Your sister through marriage," he smirked, his hand sifting through his pocket and pulling out a small black box. "I'm going to propose in a week."

Rachel placed her arms around his waist and placed her head to his chest, "You're the best brother I've ever had."

Richard smiled and hugged her back, "We should get out there, Nina's probably getting worried.

Rachel nodded and followed him out to the open dining and living room.

"Rachel did you cook all this?" Nina asked amazed.

Richard snorted, "Rachel can't cook."

"Stop being such a dick, Dick," Rachel threw a couch pillow at him, which he caught easily. "It's take out, but I set everything up."

Nina had arrived early to do Rachel hair for the event, she had styled it, and cut her bangs straight across. Rachel loved them.

"It looks great," she grinned.

The doorbell rang and before either girl could move Richard had dashed for the door, they both smirked at each other.

"Kori," Nina said knowingly. The two had roomed together a couple of times while doing the same runway shows in England. It was initially how Rachel had been introduced to her.

After a few minutes Richard led Kori into the living room, his hand protectively on the small of her back.

"Friends, it is so nice to see you," Kori smiled, hugged Rachel and then Nina.

"How was your flight?" Nina asked.

"It was too long," Kori joked.

"I'll bet," Rachel replied. "Where's your luggage?"

"I'll bring it up later," Richard said. "Kori, do you want anything to drink?"

"No thank you, I wish to speak with Rachel regarding Garfield," Kori said.

Rachel blushed and Nina gasped, "That's the guy? The billionaire, Garfield Logan?"

"I'm a billionaire too," Richard replied. "Why do you act so amazed?"

"Yeah, but you're a cheapskate," Nina stuck out her tongue. "Garfield's a saint. I mean he's opened over twenty animal parks over the US alone, not to mention the work in Africa."

Rachel blushed, but couldn't avoid Kori's gaze.

"Do you wish to discuss this in private?" Kori asked.

Richard chuckled, causing Rachel to glare at him, and the two girls to look between the two curiously. "No, I mean there's nothing really to discuss."

"What she means is we already know everything," Nina grinned. "I think it's cute that she's had this secret crush on him."

"Yes, it is most adorable, and I am sure he is crushing as well," Kori smiled, and Rachel could feel her face growing hot.

"Look, I promise to give detail to detail if anything happens tonight, which I'm not expecting anything unusual to happen," she said plainly.

Rachel came to hate those words later on, wondering if she had jinxed herself by lying. She had hoped with everything that something would happen, something good, but it was more like reliving her nightmare.

Everyone had pretty much arrived at the same time. It didn't take long for everyone to gather first around Kori so they could catch up, and then around the engaged couple. Richard had music playing and she helped make sure wine glasses and food trays were always full, but it was hard. Wally had arrived with his housemates, all four of them had had dates.

"Hi Rachel," Garth smiled widely at her. "This is Jenn."

"Nice to meet you," Rachel smiled, good thing she was an excellent liar. "and it's good to see you Garth." They hugged lightly.

"I just love your home, but I have to ask, what's it like living with Richard Grayson?" Jenn asked.

Rachel almost rolled her eyes, "You know the tabloids are completely fake. He doesn't screw every girl that walks."

Jenn flinched as Rachel's voice had gotten louder towards the end of the phrase.

The blonde blushed, "I'm sorry I didn't mean anything like that."

Rachel glared now, "Well what the hell did you mean?"

"Whoa! When did you get such a potty mouth," Gar laughed walking over with his date on his arms.

Rachel was greatful he had cut in and stopped her from making an even bigger scene, "I'm sorry, you just have no idea how many people ask me that."

Jenn smiled, "I can imagine, you two are still the talk of the campus."

"Hi! I'm Megan, Garfield's friend," the short blonde held out her hand.

Rachel shook her hand hesitantly, but couldn't bring herself to return the smile. "Nice to meet you."

"Hey, Rachel don't I get a hug?" Gar pouted.

Rachel winced, "Hello to you too Gar," she said stiffly.

"Oh my goodness! You're Rachel Roth! I can't believe I didn't put two and two together!" Megan clapped her hands excitedly.

Rachel flushed, to make it worst it was another novel groupie.

"I just love your books. They're so… intense and romantic!"

"You wrote Blood Express?" Jenn gasped.

Rachel sighed. What was the point of having a penname if people could just Google your real name? She had written a total of four books since entering college, a series about a couple that traveled the world as highly trained assassins. Richard had had a fit when he read the first one, saying that she was subconsciously teaching readers that killing was ok. It had been a huge success and she had quite a bit of royalties coming in, and possibly a movie deal by the time she graduated.

"Yes, I did," Rachel replied.

"You're books are so amazing! How do you know Gar?" Megan asked.

"We went to high school together," Gar said easily.

They talked some more, Megan asking Rachel questions and Gar answering them for her, but Rachel couldn't really concentrate. All she could think was how much this girl reminded her of Terra, and how close she stood beside Gar. She could feel herself getting dizzy.

"Are you guys enjoying your evening?" Richard was suddenly beside her, a hand on her back steadying her.

"Yes."

"Of course."

Megan and Jen both seemed to be seeing hearts, and Rachel noticed Garth had snuck off. Gar just looked uncomfortable.

"Well, I'm glad you could make it, mind if I steal Rachel away?"

"Not at all," Jenn said with a wink.

"But I'll catch up with you after right?" Megan asked, hopeful.

"Of course," Rachel lied as Richard led her to the hallway.

"Why don't you chill in here until you're nerves calm down," he said when they reached her room.

* * *

Gar watched as Richard returned to Kori's side. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out Rachel was upset. She seemed to always be upset when he was around. He spent the rest of the night with Megan, until she left an hour later then he just spent it catching up and goofing off with the guys. He and Garth were in the same hotel, they'd be staying in Gotham for the entire weekend so they could drive Megan back, though Gar was regretting it. All he wanted to do was go back to Jump City and pretend like Rachel didn't exist.

She was stiff with him, like he made her uncomfortable. She wouldn't look him in the eye, and kept as far away from him as possible, and then after a painfully strained conversation she left not to be seen for the rest of the night.

He had attracted all kinds of attention in Jump, but the one girl who's attention he wanted, wouldn't give him the time of day. He would've sulked the entire day, but Victor called him telling him to meet him over at the Wayne Estate for a video tournament. At least video games would keep his mind off of things or so he thought.

Gar was pulled into the kitchen where Richard was waiting for him, "Ok what's with you bringing two random girls here?"

"It's Garth's fault, I didn't invite them," Gar fumed.

"Well don't ever bring them around Jinx, she thinks one of them has a thing for Wally and I really don't want to see that fight," Vic shuddered.

"Dude that wouldn't be a fight, it'd be a slaughter," Gar chuckled.

"But seriously, you didn't invite them, but you spent the whole evening with them?" Richard said calmly.

This set all kinds of alarms off in Gar's head. One, Richard was pissed, two, he already had a valid reason to be pissed he just wanted to give Gar the chance to dig his grave a little deeper, and three, he already had a punishment planned out for him.

"I… I mean they don't really know anyone, and I can't just bail on them," Gar spoke, but the sinking feeling in his stomach seemed to grow.

"Let me rephrase the question, you like Raven, you flirt with her every chance you get but you show up here with another girl and one that looks a whole lot like Terra," Richard was still calm, casually leaning on the counter.

Gar felt his anger grow, "That's bullshit, you're making it out like I'm leading her on or something. She stopped talking to me the moment you invited her to move away with you."

"No offense, but Rae hasn't changed, she's still her same little introverted self," Victor said. "You on the other hand changed a whole lot."

Gar felt like punching something, "Ok, so what, she moves in with another guy-"

"Not another guy… with me, and you know she's like my kid sister so don't even go there," Richard snapped. "Not to mention she was sharing a room with Kori, and I was sharing with Tim."

"But they both moved out-"

"So what, you believe the tabloids then?" Richard snapped.

"Look did you just invite me here to jump down my throat?' Gar shot back.

"No man, it's just Bee and I are moving to Steel city, Wally and Jinx are moving to Europe," Victor said softly.

"And I'm marrying Kori in a year," Richard added. "Before I get married we're severing the bond, one of us needs to remain close to her. You know how she is with keeping in touch."

"But she doesn't like me. She doesn't talk to me, she barely looks at me, and she can't even stay in the same room as me for more than half an hour," Gar grumbled.

"But you're in love with her right?" Victor asked. "I mean your eyes never left her when she was in the room."

Gar blushed, "But…."

"Look the point is, when we leave she's going to feel alone and vulnerable, and I'd ask you to at least do the brotherly thing but we all know you don't want to see yourself as her brother, so why don't you grow a back bone and be straight forward with her."

"I am straight forward, I mean everyone knows-"

"So that's it then?" Richard cut him off.

"Dick he has a point, it's hard to read what Rachel's feeling, besides anger," Victor said.

"You guys don't get it, I mean she has nightmares literally every night, and most of them aren't even dreams they actually happened to her. She's fragile, she's always been fragile, and I don't want to just leave her hanging when me and Kori move away."

Gar felt a lump forming in his throat, "So what, you want to brush her off on me?"

"So you're saying that if Raven lived alone, and you were the only one of us in town you'd let things stay the way they are between you?" Richard asked.

"No," Gar could feel his eyes watering. "I just… I told her ok. I told her the night you asked her to come with you to Gotham, I told her I loved her and she hasn't spoken to me since."

The three of them were silent a few minutes, just taking in everything. Gar felt betrayed. Wasn't he a part of their family too? Wasn't it obvious that he wasn't the one leaving her behind, she was leaving him behind? He'd be all alone again, graduation was soon, and then what? He'd get his own place, work a nine to five job, maybe do a little hero work, and he'd be all alone because even though girls would show interest, he'd be longing for her.

"Tell her again," Richard said simply.

"What?" Gar gulped.

"She's ready to hear it, she just needed time Gar, you know Rachel, she can't just jump into anything, she has to think about it, analyze it," Richard shrugged. "She's alone in the apartment."

Gar caught the keys mid air.

"Well don't just stand there," Vic smirked.

He gulped and walked slowly out of the house and to his car. He was nervous, but the look in his friend's eyes told him to do what he said. It was a risk, he could be setting himself up for humiliation, but a part of him hoped… well he just hoped.

He almost rang the doorbell, but caught himself pulling out the key Richard had given him. It was completely quiet, and her scent was everywhere. He walked through the living room noticing the place was spotless. Then again she had probably used magic to clean up everything. He went to her room, which was on the right, the closest to the bathroom, and knocked softly on the door.

She made some unintelligent sound, but it sounded like an affirmation so he let himself in. She was curled up on her bed, back facing him, still wearing the dress from the night before.

"Did you forget something?" she asked not turning around.

"I... we need to talk," he said with a little more confidence than he felt.

"About?"

He took a deep breath, "If I'm going to do this can you at least look at me?"

"Gar you don't need to explain to me that you got a girl friend," she wasn't angry, she just sounded tired. "It's perfectly fine."

"Raven-"

"It's Rachel," she cut him off, sitting up and turning to face him. Her eyes were bloodshot red, her face was puffy and tearstained. "Sorry I look a mess, I fell asleep, didn't even change I was so tired."

He nodded, "Look, Megan isn't my girl friend, I didn't even invite her, Garth did."

"I really don't need an explanation," she said.

"Well I do," he snapped. "Are you in love with Robin?"

She frowned, "No, why would you even ask something like that?"

"It's the only reason I could come up with to explain why you've been treating me this way," he replied. "I mean we got really close after Tokyo, and I get that Robin asked you to go with him, but I just thought, you know, after hearing my confession that you'd change your mind and stay, but instead you've just been giving me the cold shoulder. You literally talk to Wally more than you talk to me."

"So because of that I must like my best friend's soon to be husband?" Rachel glared at him.

"Why are you living here? Why are you putting yourself in a situation where Richard feels obligated to take care of you, why didn't you let me take care of you?" he squeaked out the last sentence, his throat tightening.

"How would you have taken care of me Gar? You couldn't even take care of yourself," she replied. "Despite what you think I didn't go to Richard and have him take care of me. I actually hadn't planned anything. I mean I had no money, and I couldn't even enroll in classes because I didn't even have a birth certificate. I had no clue what I wanted to do so when he showed up with all my paperwork taken care of how could I turn him down? If he had done the same for you-"

"But me loving you meant nothing?" he growled.

"You didn't ask me to stay!" she shrieked.

"What?"

"You told me you loved me… you told me I was your best friend, but the moment I moved here you cut me off, you think I can't tell when you're unhappy with me?"

"You're angry with me all the time, but I get mad and give you a little of your own medicine you act like the wounded victim Raven, it's not fair! Not to mention you've never said it back," he growled.

She rolled her eyes, "Look, this is my perspective. You guys were my family. I never thought about romantically or anything. The team was ending and you all had some place to go, a life planned after being a titan, and I didn't. I couldn't even think about it. You were always really nice to me. You all were extremely kind to me, and when you told me you loved me I thought you were just giving me reassurance. I didn't know you expected me to… to feel a different kind of love for you, and it was extremely idiotic on my part."

"Ok… but then why did you avoid me after this, even last night you were so stiff around me," he asked.

"You were angry with me, it was like you suddenly hated me," she sniffled. "I mean, we lived together and I always treated you like shit, but you never as you put it, gave me a taste of my own medicine."

Gar couldn't help but feel guilty. It had taken him a month to not see red at the thought of Raven choosing to stay with Robin instead of him. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Rachel whispered.

Gar sighed starring at her. She looked broken, and honestly he had never seen that much emotion on her face. She was beautiful, so small and fragile, so innocent. He was an idiot for waiting so long to pursue her. Of course Raven wouldn't realize what he felt for her until someone, (probably Kori, Vic, and Dick) explained it to her.

"So what now?" he asked.

She looked up at him, "I don't know."

"Well I know," he sat down beside her on her bed. "First," he took her hand and pulled off her halo ring. He smiled at the familiarity of her features, and was shocked at how much he'd missed seeing her, really seeing her. Violet orbs stared at him as he removed his own ring. "I know when I did this before it was premature, and maybe I didn't fully understand what I meant at the time, but it's been two years so I figure we can give it another try."

She didn't speak she just stared at him as he took her hand again.

"Raven, you're the most amazing girl I know. You're smart, you're beautiful, you're badass, you're sensible, and really you're my dream girl," he blushed after saying this, not expecting his words to come out so mushy, he had hoped to sound at least somewhat cool, but he felt a little satisfaction as her grey skin flushed red. "I was born Garfield Logan, but underneath it all, I'll always be Beastboy, so you don't ever have to worry about me leaving you or ever not loving you because I'll always love you."

She gasped at his words, and tears started to fall.

"You don't have to say any-" he was cut off as she jumped into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck, and burying her face in the crook of his neck. He smiled, encasing her in his arms, a feeling he had only been able to experience a handful of times before.

"Me too," she whispered. A burst of happiness spilled across his chest, and he pulled back to see her face, and then kissed her. One kiss turn into several more, even when it was getting harder to breathe he couldn't bring himself to stop until a hand pressed softly on his chest.

They were both breathing heavily and grinning at each other.

"So now what?" Rachel asked.

"I guess we could have a long distance relationship, I'll come up every weekend to see you," he grinned.

She smiled, "Just for this semester, then I suppose I can transfer to Jump University."

He gave her a chaste kiss on the lips, "Want to live together?"

"Not with you and three other guys," she wrinkled her knows.

"We'll find a place," he grinned. "A nice little apartment in walking distance of that tea shop you loved so much."

"Then what's after that?" she asked, shifting around so her back lay against his chest, wresting her head just beneath his. He shifted as well, scooting them back so he could rest his back on the headboard.

"Well, after a year you'll graduate and start your next novel, and I'll enter medical school," he said. "And Kori and Richard will probably be expecting."

She nodded, "And then."

"Well I suppose one day I'll propose, and we'll get married." He felt giddy just saying it

"Uh huh, and then what?"

"Well, I'll start my practice in the states before we decide if we want to maybe live in another country, I've always wanted to go back to Africa. Then we'll have about ten fifteen kids"

"Ha… now you're hallucinating," she chuckled. "How about one?"

"Seven," he replied.

"Two," she said, her voice slightly hesitant.

"Six, but I'm not going any lower," he grinned.

"Ha… we'll see about that," she replied.

He just let himself relax, closing his eyes, and relishing the feeling of her in his arms.

"Beastboy…."

"Yeah?"

"Thanks… you know, for still loving me after everything," she said. Her voice held so much emotion, a trait he wasn't used to her having, but it stirred something in him.

"I'll never stop Rae," he said confidently. He knew she'd always be his love, and he couldn't change it even if he wanted to.

"Thank you."

* * *

**Author's note**: I wanted to show Raven lacking the ability to truly show Gar she reciprocated his feelings, and the difficulties it would bring about. Also I felt like her having the bond with Richard kind of put their relationship on a slippery slope, which leads to the decision to sever the bond because they wanted to be tied to other people. Criticism and comments welcome.

Regarding my other stories, I had written chapters for them, but they were accidentally deleted and it really annoys me to have to rewrite what I already wrote, but I'll get to them eventually. Sorry for the wait. :(


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